With the dead sea scrolls I was quoting a page I saw on them. I can't defend the date, it may well be derived from the Essene (sp) settlement rather than from the text.
You're probably right about the Epic of Gilgamesh, but I have not seen any evidence of a still-existing early copy. The story is probably much older than the Unas text, but I believe that the existing copies are younger. Virtually all of the Sumerian and Egyptian epics had their origins in very early times.
I read the original post as "the oldest still existing," and qualified my answer as literary works. Lots of sumerian tablets are older than the unas text. It would be interesting to find out if Gilgamesh is among those we have preserved....
Well, it's not paper, but the oldest surviving copy of a literary text that I am aware of the pyramid texts from the tomb of Wenas (Unas) dated 2323BCE. On paper (papyrus) you can look at the Dead Sea scrolls (oldest are 200bc).
Because the parents vote and contribute to campaigns (at least here in the US) and the politicos would never point a finger of blame at their cash cows....
Slashdot Mirror
With the dead sea scrolls I was quoting a page I saw on them. I can't defend the date, it may well be derived from the Essene (sp) settlement rather than from the text.
You're probably right about the Epic of Gilgamesh, but I have not seen any evidence of a still-existing early copy. The story is probably much older than the Unas text, but I believe that the existing copies are younger. Virtually all of the Sumerian and Egyptian epics had their origins in very early times.
I read the original post as "the oldest still existing," and qualified my answer as literary works. Lots of sumerian tablets are older than the unas text. It would be interesting to find out if Gilgamesh is among those we have preserved....
Well, it's not paper, but the oldest surviving copy of a literary text that I am aware of the pyramid texts from the tomb of Wenas (Unas) dated 2323BCE. On paper (papyrus) you can look at the Dead Sea scrolls (oldest are 200bc).
Because the parents vote and contribute to campaigns (at least here in the US) and the politicos would never point a finger of blame at their cash cows....